The 17th hole at St. Andrews is the most famous par-4 in the world and is also the toughest on the Old Course. There's all sorts of trouble up around the green -- the Road Hole bunker that can end your chances quickly with a couple hacks, the wall that abutts the back of the green and a very narrow landing area on the green.
But the tee shot may be the signature aspect of the Road Hole. It's a blind shot. You're essentially staring at a wall and the Old Course hotel, hitting your drive to some fairway off in a distant land you cannot see. ESPN ingeniously set up some ProTracer technology looking back at the tee as the balls come up, over, and around the wall and hotel.
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(Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
There are many ways to play the shot. Bubba Watson said he buzzes the hotel when he wants to play a cut. Jordan Spieth hit it way out to the left and cut it back into the fairway. The montage overlaying multiple ProTracer streaks shows just how confusing and challenging it can get with the variance of trajectories and flight paths.
Loved this ESPN graphic pic.twitter.com/ITOnywoMov
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) July 16, 2015
It's a difficult shot to visualize on the hardest hole on the course.
★★★
SB Nation video archives: The toughest holes in all of golf (2014)